HELP Stylus Cantilever slightly bent to the left

Thanks for all of the information, I will try to not let it bother my OCD tendencies anymore. I am listening to Paul Simon's Graceland right now and it sounds excellent.

Jerko: I just purchased a used Clearaudio Emotion with Satisfy arm and Virtuoso cart from a member on Audiogon. I noticed the exact same thing when setting it up. I did my alignment according to the cantilever and not the cartridge body, however, I am unable to get the tonearm exactly lined up with the long parallel lines on the alignment chart. Whenever I line up the tonearm, it would be nearly impossible for me to get the stylus to line up correctly on the cross hairs. Things seem to sound ok, although I am getting distortion sometimes when playing the inside of a record. I've been experimenting with tracking force, but my pressure gauge is old and doesn't appear to be entirely accurate.

If you use and arc style protractor and align the cantilever with the paralel lines, it should sound right reguardless of this bend and I don't think it should worsen over time. Then again, if you think it sounds right now maybe you're well aligned already. Still the Mint LP best tractor may be a worthwhile thing to try.

I aligned the cartridge according to the directions. You basically pull the cartridge to the most forward position in the head shell. I'm not too experienced with turntable setup. I did check it against some of the free alignment printouts from the internet and it seems to be pretty accurate.

I also set my amp to mono and changed the setting so the meters freeze on the peak level. It looks to me that the left/right balance is even. Is there anything else I can do to test this?

As long as it sounds good to me I guess it is aligned properly. What can I listen for that is a telltale sign of improper alignment?

What can I listen for that is a telltale sign of improper alignment?
Jerko (System | Threads)

Distortion.